


show me the door

by trouvailleamor



Series: Community: The Adventures of a Season 7 [1]
Category: Community (TV)
Genre: F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Road Trip, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-11-15 19:25:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11237595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trouvailleamor/pseuds/trouvailleamor
Summary: Jeff Winger knew from a very young age that he is difficult to love, and he is okay with that. Now, he has a problem named Annie Edison.





	1. Britta-ing Jeff's Plans

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine, I'm just a big fan of the show.

Jeff Winger knew from a very young age that he is difficult to love.

Every Father’s Day, as well as most other days when he was younger, he would wonder why his father left. He tried asking his mother but she would always dodge the question, usually offering him something he couldn’t resist, like ice cream. After that, he tried asking his grandmother. She would get an angry look in her eye and mumble something under her breath about a “no good dead beat”, but she would never give him a straight answer.

As he grew older, he could only assume that it had something to do with him. After the “Big Cheddar Foosball Incident”, he decided not to care anymore. He revamped his entire personality and masked himself with false confidence. He forced himself to forget about his father, to forget about love. It only worked for so long.

Somehow, after the whole getting disbarred and being sucked into the strange, nonsensical world of Greendale Community College thing, his Spanish study group broke down his walls.

Well, partially. 

~~~~

“Jeff, why don’t you want to come visit Annie with us?” Britta asks over the phone. "This is the only time where we will be able to see her for months." She is in complete therapist mode, so he has to make sure he treads lightly.

Jeff leans back into his couch cushions and swirls his glass. He observes it under the light, then takes a sip. “It’s not that I don’t want to, except that I don’t. She only left a couple months ago and I’m sick.” He adds a cough for extra emphasis.

“Nice try, Winger. You’ve already used that bit,” She says. “In fact, the last time you used it was when we were moving Annie out of her apartment…”

Jeff could practically hear her putting the pieces together in her brain. “Yes, I get it. I’m the worst. But it doesn’t matter anyway. Annie will be happy enough seeing you and Abed again.”

“And Shirley! Come on, Winger. It’ll only be for the weekend,” She pushes. 

Jeff sighs and downs the rest of his drink, slamming it on the coffee table. “Britta, there are so many other things I’d rather do than sit in a car for 3 days with you people. I would basically be committing myself to a week of torture.”

“What other things? Celebrating your father’s birthday?”

The words nearly knock all the air out of his lungs. _Damn you Britta for being a prying pain in the ass. ___

____

He takes a deep breath and swallows his pride. “Fine. Just promise me you’ll never bring it up again. Or tell Annie I’m coming.”

“Why not?” She says. He can practically see the grin on her face, the same grin she always has when she thinks she has uncovered some trauma in his head.

“Bye, Britta,” He says, then hangs up the phone. He slides further into the couch and squeezes his eyes shut. He really, really doesn’t want to face Annie.

~~~~

A couple of months ago, he kissed her because she said he’d regret it if he didn’t. Knowing himself, he probably wouldn’t have regretted it, but now he certainly does. He doesn’t typically like thinking about the way things could have been, but now he can’t seem to avoid it. His original plan was to avoid Annie at all costs, but Britta seems to have Britta-ed that.

He hasn’t spoken to Annie since a week after she left, and that is not a memory he wants to think about ever again. 

He covers his eyes with his hands and groans. Forcing himself to stand up, he wanders over to his bedroom to start packing.  
He pulls out a sweatshirt and track pants for the car ride, as well as two of his nicest button up shirts and pants. If he has to see Annie, he might as well look good. 

As he is carefully wrapping his cologne in bubble wrap (some things never change), his phone buzzes in his back pocket. He pulls it out and squints at the screen. 'Troy Study Group' flashes back at him. 

“Hello?”

“Jeff Winger, you son of a bitch,” Troy exclaims.

“Troy! Where are you calling from? I was pretty sure they didn’t have cell service in the middle of the ocean.”

“I’m in California! You know, the place with ocean and palm trees and Walt Disney?”

“I’ve heard of it,” Jeff says, smiling to himself.

“Anyways, I’m at the airport. I’m catching a plane back tonight. I gotta dump a bunch of stuff I got on the trip at my parent's house,” A crunching sound comes from Troy’s end of the phone.

“That’s great, Troy. Does Abed know?”

“Not yet. I figure I’d surprise him,” He says, and then there is more crunching.

“What’s that sound?” Jeff asks, while folding his shirt and placing it in his bag.

“A fun time snack.” Troy doesn’t elaborate and Jeff doesn’t ask him to. “Hey, are you going to visit Annie?” 

Jeff sucks in a breath. “Yeah. Are you?”

“I think so. I miss her. Did you hear Britta rented a van?”

Jeff sighed. “Great.”

“Oh, my flight is starting to board. Catch you later?” Troy says. Jeff can almost see his signature smile through the phone.

“Yeah. Bye,” He says, then hangs up the phone.

He throws the phone on the bed and attempts to zip up his bag. Of course, it won’t close. He has to take out about half of his toiletries. Apparently swearing at inanimate objects doesn’t do much to help anything. It doesn’t mean that he didn’t try it anyway.

After about an hour of this, Jeff flops down on the bed in surrender. As he begins to drift off to sleep, his phone buzzes beside his head. He slowly opens his eyes to see it and nearly has a heart attack when he sees a text from 'Annie Study Group'. He nearly rolls off the bed while trying to grab his phone. He opens it slowly and braces himself.

 

_Hey Jeff – Britta told me you’re coming this weekend. It’ll be nice to see you guys.  
-Annie Edison ___

____

 

____

He mentally curses Britta as he throws his phone onto the carpet and shoves his face into his pillow.

____

This is going to be a long week.

____


	2. The Winger Takes It All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the study group gains a new guest on their road trip...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who has read this story so far!  
> Again, these characters aren't mine, I'm just borrowing them

Jeff wakes up to a loud horn going off outside his condo, followed by pounding on his door.

“Jeffery! Are you in there?” A cheerful voice fills his ears and breaks him out of his unconsciousness. 

He stumbles out of his bedroom and down the hall to his front door. He pulls the door open a crack. “Hello?”

Shirley pushes the door open as Jeff staggers backward.

“Hello!” Shirley says joyfully. “I was hoping you’d be ready to go since everyone is out in the van.” Her tone never wavers but she certainly isn’t as nonthreatening as she sounds.

“I must’ve overslept my alarm…” Jeff lies, then smiles. “It’s great to see you Shirley.”

“Aw!” She says and leans in to hug him. She squeezes him tight for a few seconds then lets him go. “Now get your ass moving boy, we have places to get to!” 

~~~~

Somehow, Jeff is out of the house in five minutes, not spending his usual hour on his hair. After climbing over Abed’s enormous mountain of stuff and being berated for sleeping in by the rest of the group, they were off.

"Why didn't we just buy plane tickets?" Jeff asks as he settles into the van.

"Because I'm broke, Shirley just spent a lot of money on a plane ticket to come back and help with Shirley's Sandwich's, Abed just spent a lot of money getting back here for his father's birthday, and Troy just got off a plane," Britta says. "Wait, Troy. Why didn't you just catch a plane ride up to D.C.?" Britta asks. 

"I didn't want to miss any of the fun, and I had so much luggage I could barely carry it. Plus, I missed you guys. Especially Abed," Troy says, then he and Abed do their signature handshake. 

“Britta, can you change this music please?” Shirley says in her sugar sweet tone, over the loud (and horrible) indie rock music. She is sitting shotgun, Britta is driving, Troy and Abed are in the middle row, and Jeff is alone in the back.

“Shirley, this song was my anthem at the pinnacle of my activism days! It walks about the important issues that no one else will talk about and-“

“Ugh!” The rest of the group collectively groans. Britta and Shirley continue their fight for several minutes they settle on the Police, while Troy and Abed talk about the shows they watched while they were apart. 

_It’s like they were never separated _, Jeff thinks.__

__“It’s like we’re soulmates, but like the friend kind,” Troy says, summing up Jeff’s thoughts completely._ _

__“Friend-mates,” Abed agrees._ _

__They fall into a comfortable silence for a while, just listening to the hum of the car on the road. Shirley passes out some cookies she made for everyone. They, of course, were heavenly._ _

__Jeff rests his head against the cold window and closes his eyes in an effort to stop an impending headache. He is avoiding thinking about… the thing he isn’t thinking about. He is doing a good job of it to until Britta rips through the silence and ruins it._ _

__“So Jeff, why didn’t you want to see Annie?”_ _

__The reaction is practically instantaneous._ _

__“What?” Shirley and Troy say at the same time in shock._ _

__“Who wouldn’t want to see Annie? Besides Jeff, apparently,” Abed says in his matter-of-fact way._ _

__“Britta, stop trying to psychoanalyze me in front of everyone. It’s more embarrassing for you when you do this than when you do it one on one,” Jeff says nonchalantly, never opening his eyes. Inside, his heart is hammering and his thoughts are a constant stream of _IhateyouBrittaIhateyouBrittaIhateyouBritta _.___ _

____“Jeffery, is this about your kiss?” Shirley asks._ _ _ _

____Jeff shoots up and glares at the back of Britta’s head. “I don’t know how you know that, but I can take a wild guess. And it doesn’t matter. It was just a goodbye kiss.”_ _ _ _

____“Pretty steamy for a goodbye kiss, Jeff,” Troy says._ _ _ _

____“And how would _you _know that?” Jeff asks, slightly horrified.___ _ _ _

______“I was livestreaming our season finale to Troy. You must have been caught on one of my cameras,” Abed says innocently._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Of course we were Abed,” Jeff rolls his eyes, then closes them and leans back against the window._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hey Winger, we aren’t done here!” Britta yells from the front seat. “You must confront your feelings or-“_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Or what Britta? You’ll come back here and make me?” He snickers._ _ _ _ _ _

______The van falls into silence again for a minute until it lurches suddenly to the right._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Britta!” Troy yells as Abed screams and grips his arm._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff holds onto the handle above his head and yells, “Hey! Watch it!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Our Father, who art in Heaven,” Shirley cries._ _ _ _ _ _

______Britta stops the van and throws it into park. “Calm down guys! We’re fine!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Maybe on the outside Britta, maybe on the outside,” Troy says as he pats a whining Abed on the head._ _ _ _ _ _

______Britta rolls her eyes, then unbuckles herself and climbs over the console._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You must,” Britta yells as she steps on Abed’s leg pushes against Troy’s head, “Confront your feelings! It’s important for your mental health!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff unbuckles quickly and jumps over the seat into the trunk. He throws open the back door and leaps out. “Newsflash Britta, I’ve been ignoring my feelings for years and I’m fine!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______He runs over toward the rest stop as Britta follows._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Good Lord, can we ever do anything normal?” Shirley asks no one in particular._ _ _ _ _ _

______~~~~_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff loses Britta somewhere near the line for McDonald’s. As a precaution, he slips into the men’s bathroom. Knowing from past experience, Britta is not afraid of the boundaries the door of the men’s bathroom might suggest._ _ _ _ _ _

______Unfortunately for him, there are only two stalls, and they are both occupied._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Damn it!” He curses under his breath._ _ _ _ _ _

______As if sheer wishful thinking summoned it, one of the stall doors opens a crack. Jeff sees his chance and goes for it. He shoves the door open and pushes his way inside._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Occupied! Occupied!” A man shouts from the other side of the stall. Jeff looks at the opposite wall, trying to give the man a little bit of privacy._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m so sorry, but I’m hiding from my crazy friend and she’ll find me if-“ Jeff starts but is interrupted by a gasp before he could finish._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Jeffery? Jeffery Winger? In my restroom stall? I’ve had dreams about this but I never thought it would ever actually happen…”  
Jeff slowly turns around to face Dean Pelton, who is wearing a Playboy Bunny costume and is practically fainting over the toilet behind him._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You have got to be kidding me,” He says, banging his head against the wall._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I was just getting ready to meet up with… someone, but I can cancel…” The Dean trails off, smiling suggestively at Jeff._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Please don’t. I’ll be out of here as soon as I’m sure I’ve lost Britta,” Jeff says. “Could I borrow your phone to call a cab? I left mine in the van.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Of course, Jeffery,” The Dean says, while reaching into his leotard to grab it._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Uh, never mind,” He says, as the door to the bathroom whips open._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I know you’re in here Jeff, and I know you know I have no sense of boundaries!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______She walks over to the stall next to them and kicks it open, revealing a man hunched over the toilet retching. Hearing Britta stumble through an apology is enough for Jeff to blow his hiding place._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I cannot believe you even Britta-ed hide and seek,” He says._ _ _ _ _ _

______Britta pushes the stall door open and says, “Ah ha! I’ve got you now! Now you have to tell me about… Dean?” She looks past Jeff to see the Dean, who was not so subtly checking out Jeff’s back muscles._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Yeah, just my luck right? Anyways, I’m not talking about my so-called ‘feelings’, so can we get back on the road?” Jeff pushes past her._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Jeff, you’re going to have to open up about this before we get to D.C. you know,” She warns._ _ _ _ _ _

______“D.C..? Why are you going there?” The Dean cuts in._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Don’t,” Jeff says, the same time Britta says, “We’re visiting Annie.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______The Dean gasps again and puts his hand over his mouth. “Annie Edison? We all have missed her so much at Greendale, isn’t that right Jeffery?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Britta side-eyes him, but he keeps his eyes on the Dean._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Is there room in your van for one more?” The Dean exclaims._ _ _ _ _ _

______“No,” Jeff says, the same time Britta says, “Yes!” Jeff glares daggers at her._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff could not thank all the gods enough that there was no one at that rest stop he knows, because he doesn’t know how he could possibly explain him walking through McDonald’s with a wannabe Sigmund Froid and a bald Playboy Bunny._ _ _ _ _ _

______~~~~_ _ _ _ _ _

______When they got back to the car, the others were surprised, but not as much as they probably should have been, to see the Dean there in a Playboy costume with Britta and Jeff._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hey Dean, what are you doing here?” Troy asks as the Dean settles into his seat next to Jeff._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m here for the roadDEAN!” He says._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Oh, that’s nice!” Shirley exclaims while Jeff rolls his eyes._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That’s not even a pun,” He says._ _ _ _ _ _

______“This is exactly the appropriate time for a plot twist like this,” Abed remarks._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Thanks Abed!” The Dean endears, quickly poking Abed on the head._ _ _ _ _ _

______~~~~_ _ _ _ _ _

______Troy, Abed, and Shirley fall asleep almost as soon as the sun goes down. Britta promises to drive through the night, but Jeff can already see her fading fast. The Dean turned on his infamous ABBA playlist immediately after getting in the van, and it was still playing._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff is sure he’ll never get Mamma Mia out of his head again._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Pssst, Jeffery,” The Dean whispers, gesturing for Jeff to come closer. Jeff does, although only slightly. “You never explained why you were hiding earlier. Not that I’m complaining or anything.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff rolls his eyes. “Britta was being Britta. Nothing more.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______The Dean doesn’t seem completely satisfied with his answer, but when he realizes he isn’t getting anything else, he leans back over toward his window and starts singing something under his breath that sounds a lot like “Dancing Dean”._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jeff leans back and looks at the ceiling. He really wishes he had pushed back a little harder against Britta’s persuasions to go on this trip. He has been avoiding thinking about Annie all day, and up until Britta screwed it up, it had been working._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Jeff is pretty sure Annie Edison will be the death of him._ _ _ _ _ _


	3. Bathroom Breaks and Phone Calls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a very unexpected guest crashes the party...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading!  
> None of these characters are mine

A week after Annie left, Jeff made a mistake. 

To be more specific, he made a very drunk mistake.

A very drunk, phone-related mistake.

A mistake in which “I let you go, Annie,” turned into “I can’t let you go, let’s get married.”

Yeah, he really messed everything up.

~~~~

Jeff wakes up to a weight on his shoulder. He slowly opens his eyes to find a very bald head resting there. It takes him another moment to recognize it as the Dean, and another moment before he shakes him off. 

He groans and looks out the window to find they aren’t moving. At first, he assumes that Britta got them into an accident or something, but he then notices they are in a parking lot. 

He sits up further and sees Britta curled up, using the center consul as a pillow. Everyone else is asleep too, and Abed is snoring. Jeff smiles, remembering that week when he crashed in Abed’s dorm.

He checks out their surroundings and sees a sign welcoming them to Ohio. He realizes that they need to get going if they want to get there in time. And even though he couldn’t care less if they get there on time, he doesn’t want Annie to be disappointed. 

He crawls out the trunk door and walks around to the driver’s side. He pulls open the door slowly, then wake Britta up enough to walk her back to his seat next to the Dean. Once she is settled, he climbs into the driver’s seat and starts the car. 

“Well, here goes nothing,” He says to himself as he pulls onto the highway.

~~~~

Abed woke up first, followed by Troy, then Shirley, then Britta. The Dean ended up snuggling with Britta’s shoulder, and was very disappointed to find that Jeff was no longer sitting there.

“Hello, Jeffery!” Shirley says, of course very cheerful even in the morning.

“Hi, Shirley. Did you happen to bring some breakfast food?” Jeff asks, already knowing the answer.

“Who do you think I am? The Lord says that breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” She says as she pulls out a tub of muffins.

“Does He? Interesting,” Jeff says, grabbing a muffin. 

They drive in comfortable and yummy silence, until Britta cuts in again. “So, Jeff-“

“No, Britta. We are not doing this. Remember that I’m the one in control of the vehicle,” Jeff threatens.

“Did you just threaten us? I can’t tell,” Abed asks, looking at Troy for assistance. Troy only shrugs and digs into another muffin. 

“No, Abed. I threatened Britta,” Jeff clarifies.

“But by threatening Britta, you threaten all of us. We are in the car as well, Jeff,” Abed says. 

“Don’t worry, Abed. Jeff is just stressed from repressing his emotions for so long. It’s really taking a toll on him,” Britta says. Jeff rolls his eyes and Shirley swats his arm, telling him to focus on the road.

“Jeffery, you shouldn’t repress your feelings. Just, let it all out,” The Dean says in a tone that suggests that there is a double entendre in his words.

“Terrible Dean, I’m pretty sure that all of this is an ethical violation. Leave me alone or I will stop this car,” He threatens again, in his best impression of Shirley as a physical ed coach. 

Everyone falls into a tense silence and Jeff drives in peace. Every once in a while, Annie worms her way into his thoughts, but he shoves her away just as quickly. 

About a half an hour later, Abed calls from the back seat. “Jeff, can we stop? I have to pee.”

“Thanks for sharing, Abed. I’ll stop at the next rest area,” He says.

~~~~

It turns out there aren’t that many rest areas on the highway they’re driving on. Abed is nearly exploding by the time they reach one, and the rest of them start to get uncomfortable as well. As Jeff pulls in, Abed jumps out before the van is completely in park.

Jeff is standing alone next to the van, texting. He sends a quick text to Duncan, saying that he has to cancel their plans to help set him up with Britta. He knows he’ll be disappointed, but he can’t help but be slightly weirded out by the thought of Duncan and Britta together.

Not that he doesn’t think they’d be perfect together, because they totally would be. For one, they’re both terrible psychologists. For another, their opposite extremes would balance them out.

He keeps his head down, avoiding eye contact with every person that walks by. He reads and rereads Annie’s last text to him, trying to make sense of it. _Is she happy that I’m coming or not? ___

__Suddenly, he hears a crashing noise coming from over by the bathrooms. He whips around to hear a man yell, “I’m not old, you’re old! You oldie!”_ _

__Jeff’s eyes almost bug out of his head. It sounds almost like… no. It can’t be. Maybe Britta’s theory on repressing his emotions has some value._ _

__“You’ll never catch me!” He hears the man say, before running into the parking lot. Jeff tries to get a better look at him, but he ducks behind a car before he could._ _

__Jeff sees a couple large men run into the parking lot, seemingly searching for the yelling man. He hears one of them say, “Let’s just leave. It was just some crazy, old man.” They walk back to their car and as soon as they’re out of view, the man hiding between the cars pops up and looks around._ _

__He catches Jeff’s eye and there is no longer any doubt in his mind. Jeff is moving before he can stop himself. The man tries to get away, but trips over his own feet and ends up on the pavement. Jeff reaches him, grabs the back of his jacket, slams him into a nearby car and turns him around._ _

__He is avoiding eye contact. Jeff can barely speak._ _

__After a few seconds of absolute disbelief, Jeff hisses under his breath._ _

__“Pierce?”_ _

__~~~~_ _

__Less than a minute later, Jeff has Pierce sitting inside their van, tied up with seatbelts and Abed’s apparently-completely-necessary-to-travel-with grappling hook._ _

__“Jeff-“ Pierce tries._ _

__“No. Shut up,” Jeff says. He can barely think._ _

__He hears the group before he sees them. Britta is on another rant about something Jeff can’t dissect. Shirley and the Dean are pretending to listen while Troy and Abed are exchanging Inspector Spacetime theories. When they see Jeff, they realize immediately that something is wrong._ _

__“What’s wrong?” Britta asks._ _

__Jeff swallows some anxiety and begins to open the door. “Why don’t you ask Pierce?”_ _

__Everyone’s mouth opens in shock. The Dean gasps, and Abed quiet-screams. Pierce stares back at them._ _

__“I have risen from the dead. Just like-“ Pierce starts._ _

__“Don’t you dare,” Shirley points her finger at him._ _

__“We seem to have a lot of catching up to do,” The Dean says, biting his lip._ _

__“No shit,” Jeff says, slamming the side door shut._ _

__~~~~_ _

__Pierce is now sat in the passenger seat next to Jeff. Shirley moved back between Britta and the Dean, something both Britta and the Dean were completely fine with. Troy calmed Abed down enough to try to comprehend what was going on._ _

__“Pierce, care to explain why you faked your death, made us go to your funeral, gave Troy your inheritance, and gave us containers of your sperm?” Britta yells from the back seat. For once, Jeff is grateful for her prying._ _

__“Yes, what was with the sperm?” Shirley asks, wrinkling her nose up._ _

__“You know you liked it,” Pierce smirks. The van erupts into chaos. Troy unbuckles and nearly launches himself at him. Abed can barely hold him back._ _

__“Hey, hey! Everyone calm down!” Jeff shouts, looking into the rearview mirror._ _

__Troy gets back in his seat and everyone is muttering to themselves._ _

__“Before we attack Pierce, let’s hear what he has to say. Although I’m warning you,” He directs at Pierce. “We don’t have a lot of patience for you anymore.”_ _

__Pierce takes a deep breath and opens his mouth, then reaches for the door handle._ _

__“Stop him!” Jeff yells, trying not to swerve the van off the road. Abed and Troy unbuckle and wrap the grappling hook around him to hold him steady. Britta, Shirley, and the Dean yell a string of expletives at Pierce and Pierce, being as endearing as usual, screams as loud as he can._ _

__“He is stopped,” Abed says, slipping into his Batman voice._ _

__“Pierce, you blew your chance. Sit there and be quiet,” Jeff orders, and although it is directed at only Pierce, everyone else quiets as well._ _

__~~~~_ _

__A few hours later, Troy and Abed have drifted off to sleep again, Britta is listening to her MP3 player, and Shirley and the Dean are talking quietly about 'Shirley’s Sandwiches'. Jeff is speeding and trying to ignore the two big things on his mind: Pierce and Annie. This becomes harder as Pierce begins to sigh deeply every minute or so._ _

__After about the fifth time, Jeff grits his teeth tight and whispers, “What, Pierce.”_ _

__“It’s just that, I’m not completely sure where we’re going and I have a commitment I’d rather not miss,” He says._ _

__“Maybe you should have thought about that before faking your own death and getting into a fight at a rest stop,” Jeff deadpans._ _

__They fall into silence again for about a minute until Pierce says, “You didn’t answer my question.”_ _

__Jeff sighs and grips the steering wheel. “We are going to visit Annie in D.C. for a few days.”_ _

__Pierce chuckles. “Annie made it to D.C.? I knew she could do it. She was always my favorite you know.”_ _

__Jeff stiffens and keeps his eyes on the road._ _

__“What, Winger? Did I hit a nerve there? I wish I remember what I said…”_ _

__“Shut up, Pierce. I was just thinking I should probably call her to let her know that you’re coming. And you know, that you’re alive,” He says, reaching into his back pocket for his phone. He scrolls through his contacts until he finds ‘Annie Study Group’. He alternates between staring at it and watching the road._ _

__“Are you going to do something, Jeff? Just press the center button. Even I know that and I’m-“_ _

__“Shut. Up. Pierce.”_ _

__“Oh,” Pierce clicks his tongue. “This is about your kiss.”_ _

__Jeff nearly drops his phone. “How do you know about that? You were dead!”_ _

__Pierce laughs. “It was a lucky guess. Actually, that’s a lie. It was featured on Leonard’s YouTube channel.”_ _

__“How do you know how to use YouTube?” Jeff asks, skipping over the obviously more important questions._ _

__“I discovered it by accident while looking for… something else. That’s beside the point. You kissed Annie and now everything is weird. Trust me, I know. I’ve been there,” Pierce nods, as if recalling a memory._ _

__“That doesn’t surprise me at all. And nothing is weird between us,” Jeff assures himself more than Pierce._ _

__“Sure, Winger. Sure,” Pierce turns away from Jeff and he internally celebrates that Pierce isn’t going to push him on this. Not that Pierce has the upper hand in any situation anymore, but still._ _

__Jeff looks back down at his phone, takes a deep breath, and presses dial. He puts the phone to his ear and listens to it ringing. There’s a click, then a soft, “Hello?”_ _

__Jeff sucks in a breath. “Hey Annie, it’s Jeff.”_ _

__“Hey! Are you guys on your way?” There is a lot of talking and typing in the background._ _

__“Yeah. Actually we’re only a few hours out. Hey, did you know that Pennsylvania is one of the most boring states to drive through?” Jeff says, trying to lighten some subtle tension between them. She laughs lightly, but seems slightly preoccupied. Jeff starts, “There’s something-“ but is interrupted._ _

__“Hey, I have to go but I’ll see you guys when you get here?”_ _

__Jeff exhales through his nose. “Yeah, yeah I’ll see you then.”_ _

__She hangs up and Jeff drops his phone into the cup holder. He can’t help but think that her rushing him off the phone wasn’t just because she’s busy._ _

__

__"Oh well, I guess she’ll just find out when we get there," Jeff mutters to himself._ _


	4. Even in the Darkest Timeline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Abed has a realization and Annie has a visitor...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> Sorry this one is kind of short.  
> These characters aren't mine!

Annie Edison is a creature of habit. She has had a set morning routine for years (wake up at 6:15, take a shower, get dressed, eat bowl of cornflakes, brush teeth, etc. etc.) and until she left Greendale, there was no chance that it was going to change. 

Things shifted slightly when she met her study group. She was part of something that wasn’t rehab, and she was good at it. She had six friends (five now, since Pierce is gone) who loved her for her, and didn’t judge her for her past weakness. Who didn’t call her “Annie Adderall” in order to demean her. She was strong again.

She left them behind to pursue what she loves, and she does love it. But she misses them all so much it hurts. Britta with her rants and sisterly support, Abed with his strange but wonderful world view, Troy with his supportive nature, Shirley with her motherly love, Pierce with his (admittedly rare) wisdom, and Jeff with his signature “Wingerisms”. 

She shudders slightly as she thinks of Jeff. It has been weeks since he called her, drunk off his ass, and they hadn’t talked since then until this morning. She got so nervous that she practically shoved him off the phone. She wonders if he remembers what he said, if he means it. 

Not that it matters anyway, she reminds herself. She’s staying here in D.C. She’s not going back to Greendale, not ever. 

~~~~

With only one hour left to their ride, Shirley switched places with Jeff. He was thankful she offered, because Pierce had fallen asleep and was snoring loudly and drooling. The only bad part about this arrangement was that he was now stuck next to Britta, who was in full therapist mode once again.

“Jeff, please talk to me about this. You’ve been so closed off and grumpy lately and now that I know it’s because of Annie, I want to help you work through your feelings,” She says. The Dean is leaning against his window, pretending not to listen.

“One, I have not been grumpy, I’ve been the same. Two, it’s not because of Annie. Three, you’re not my therapist.”

“But I can be!” She exclaims and grabs his arm. “Let’s talk.”

“I don’t think forcing people into therapy was outlined in your training,” Jeff says.

“Stop dodging. When did these feelings of animosity toward Annie start happening?” She says, tipping her head in a forced ‘I’m listening to you’ kind of way.

“Please don’t. I don’t feel animosity toward Annie. I’m just tired. And sick,” He coughs, leans back, and closes his eyes.

“Watch your back, Jeff Winger. I’m going to shrink you so hard and you won’t even see it coming,” Britta says.

“Sure, Britta. Sure.”

~~~~

Shirley pulls the van up in front of Annie’s townhouse. She puts it in park and turns around. “What are we going to do with Pierce?”

A silence falls over the group as they watch the sleeping. “Bring him inside? Did anyone call Annie to tell her, you know, that he’s alive?” Troy asks.

“I called a few hours ago, but she was busy so I couldn’t explain,” Jeff says. Britta faces him in surprise.

“You called her?” Britta exclaims.

“Back on topic, Britta. I say we either bring him in with us or leave him on the curb. I don’t think it matters either way,” Jeff says.

“Why does Britta keep talking about Jeff and Annie? She mentioned it earlier and just did again. We all know they kissed in the season finale, but I didn’t think it would be a relevant plot point in the reboot. I guess I was wrong,” Abed says.

Before Jeff could answer, Britta cuts in. “Jeff is having difficulties sorting out his feelings for Annie.”

The group collectively “oooooohs” and Jeff grunts. “Britta is mistaken. I have no feelings of any kind for Annie besides friendship.”

“Friendship isn’t a feeling, and that’s a lie anyways,” Abed says.

Everyone turns to face Abed, both in surprise and suspicion. 

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Jeff asks, knowing he won’t like the answer. 

“It all makes sense, and I can’t believe I didn’t see it before. Jeff and Annie, it all fits! For a while I thought it would be Jeff and Britta because they both brought out each other’s self-destructive sides, but Jeff is no longer wants that. Jeff wants stability, and Annie usually brings that. But now, Annie lives in D.C. and nothing is certain. That is why he is having difficulties sorting out his feelings,” Abed finishes, holding up his index finger. The group stares at Abed and Pierce snores even louder. 

“Wow, Abed. That was… profound,” Britta says, raising her eyebrows.

“Yes, plus they are together in the darkest timeline.”

Jeff laughs, slightly hysterically, then climbs over the seat until he’s in between Troy and Abed. “There is no darkest timeline, Abed.” He then reaches over him and opens the door, climbing out. “Troy and Abed, get Pierce. Make sure he doesn’t get away. Britta, Shirley, and the Dean, help bring in the bags. I’ll go ring the doorbell,” Jeff orders.

“Cool,” Abed says. “Cool cool cool.”

Jeff takes a deep breath and walks up the stairs to her front door, tentatively ringing the bell. At first, he doesn’t think anyone is coming, but then he hears footsteps. The door opens and he almost passes out. Instead he just screams. 

 

Because how is he supposed to react to Benjamin Franklin Chang standing in Annie’s doorway?


	5. 3 AM Talks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Annie reacts differently than they expected...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> None of these characters are mine

Annie Edison is slightly burnt out. She had just gotten back from her long shift at her intern job at Quantico, and she is exhausted. She knows her friends are on their way and she is so excited to see them, but she also just wants to sleep…

She dozes off for about a minute before she hears the doorbell. She is so out of it she doesn’t even process what she’s heard until she hears a scream. More specifically, Jeff's scream. 

She is out of her bed and holding her (completely legal and for her job) handgun, and is making her way down the stairs. She is ready to take action until she hears Chang say, “Calm down, Winger! It’s just me! Chang!”

Annie took a deep breath of relief. She had forgotten that Chang was here. He was sitting on her doorstep when she came home and said, “They aband-Chang-ed me.”

She felt bad enough to let him inside.

She notices Jeff’s eyes on her almost immediately as she popped up behind Chang. She flipped her hair over her shoulder – an anxious tick – and shined her signature smile.

“Hey guys! Come on inside!” She says in her butterflies-and-rainbows voice.

Chang glares at Jeff as he steps into her house. Annie tries to slow her heart down. _Jeff Winger is in my house_. She closes her eyes quickly and takes a deep breath. _He doesn’t remember what he said. He didn’t mean it_. She opens her eyes and sees him staring at her. She flashes him another smile and leads him and Chang into the living room.

_He didn’t mean it_. She thinks before he bursts through her thoughts.

“So, I’ve got kind of big news,” Jeff says as he sits on the couch, leaving enough space for her to sit next to him. She doesn’t. Instead, she sits in the chair across from him, enough space between them to allow her to think straight.

“Oh?” is all she can manage. “What is it?”

“Pierce is alive.”

She shakes her head, thinking she misheard. “What?”

“Pierce is alive,” He repeats. “And he’s here.”

“WHAT?”

~~~~

_It probably isn’t a good sign that she won’t sit next to me_ , Jeff thinks to himself. He reminds himself that there are bigger fish to fry, and they need to be fried quickly. 

When he says it, she looks shocked, which he would expect. He suspects that she doesn’t believe him. That stings a bit, but he did used to get paid for making shit up. But when Pierce is pulled through the door by Abed and Troy, he sees the look in her eyes turn from concern at his well-being to shock at Pierce’s. 

She stands up in one quick motion and she gasps. “Pierce?”

Pierce waves Troy and Abed off. “Yeah, yeah. I’m alive. No need to manhandle me.”

Britta, Shirley, and the Dean walk through the doorway holding their things and Abed’s humongous mountain of luggage. 

“Annie!” Britta, Shirley, and the Dean exclaim at the same time. They rush toward her and envelope her in a hug, but she keeps her eyes glued on Pierce. Troy joins their group huddle and Abed waves from next to Pierce.

“It’s great to see you guys, but can we get back to Pierce?” Annie asks, still with an incredulous look on her face.

“Can we also talk about Chang? As in, why is he here?” Jeff adds and Annie glares in his direction.

“Chang is here because you guys forgot him,” She says, apparently to the group, but she is only looking at Jeff.

“Yeah! I had to take a plane here all by myself!” Chang whines.

“You’re a grown man, Chang. Let it go,” Jeff shouts, which elicits everyone in the group to shout at each other. 

Jeff watches Annie, who is looking everywhere except for his face and who seems to be getting increasingly pissed off. “Annie…” He attempts to get her attention, but she screams at the top of her lungs instead of responding. 

“HEY!”

Everyone slowly quiets and looks at her with their faces hung low in shame. 

“I invite you to my house and you all just fight when you get here? I have been working for nearly 20 hours straight and even I am more put together than you are! And, you forgot Chang, one of you faked your death, and all of you didn’t force the Dean to bring a second pair of clothes? What is that all about?”

“Ouch,” The Dean says, before subsequently being elbowed in the ribs by Shirley.

“This seemed like a nice idea at the time, but maybe we should just stick to Skyping,” Annie says, looking down at her feet.

_Has everyone been Skyping Annie?_ Jeff wonders, before shaking his head.

“Are you suggesting that we pack up the van and leave?” Jeff asks. He tries to convey through his tone that he’s sorry, but judging by her face, it doesn’t seem to be working. 

She thinks about it for a second. “No. But I’m going to go out for a walk by myself for a little while. I haven’t had alone time all week and I think I’m just a bit overwhelmed.”

She awkwardly shuffles through the mass of her friends and walks out the front door. 

The door slams and they all stand in an uneasy silence. 

“I think now would be the appropriate time to say, that did not go as planned,” Abed says. 

Jeff sighs and sinks into the sofa. _No _. He thinks. _No it did not _.____

____~~~~_ _ _ _

____About eight weeks ago at around 2:45 AM, Jeffery Winger called Annie Edison’s cell phone. Annie had just gotten home from another long day, and was making herself some buttered noodles to remind her more of home. She wouldn’t say that she was having trouble adjusting, it was just so different from her old life at Greendale that the shock of it all took a lot of getting used to._ _ _ _

____If she was being honest, Jeff was the last person she thought she would hear from. Jeff is someone you just fall in sync with when he’s with you, so you don’t have to bother talking to him when apart. Not that she didn’t want to talk to him – of course she did – it’s just that she didn’t think he would call her, especially not at almost 3 in the morning._ _ _ _

____She picked up cautiously and said a small “Hello?”_ _ _ _

____“Hey,” Jeff said, his voice slurred from alcohol. “It’s Jeff Winger.”_ _ _ _

____Annie laughed nervously. “Yes, I know. And this is Annie, just in case you were too drunk to tell.”_ _ _ _

____“Haha, funny. No, I knew it was you. I’m gonna regret this big time, and you’ll never hear me repeat it so… listen close.”_ _ _ _

____“Ok…” She said._ _ _ _

____“I miss you,” He said, practically exhaling it._ _ _ _

____She let out a sigh of relief. “I miss you too.” No drunken confession that she will have to pretend didn’t happen._ _ _ _

____“No, I really, really miss you,” Jeff said, then he started laughing. “I sound like a loser, but it’s true. It’s true.”_ _ _ _

____Annie was silent. She didn’t know what to say. Luckily for her, she didn’t have to wait long before Jeff started talking again._ _ _ _

____“I told you that I let you go and I did. But I don’t wanna do that again,” He said. He sounded like he was falling asleep._ _ _ _

____“Jeff, are you okay?” Annie asked, her brow furrowing._ _ _ _

____“Let’s get married.”_ _ _ _

____She nearly dropped her phone in shock. “Wh-what?”_ _ _ _

____“Yeah, like. Let’s just do it. Let’s get married,” Jeff slurred. “I like you and I know you’re into me, so let’s do it. Let’s get married.”_ _ _ _

____Annie could barely form a coherent thought. “Uh…”_ _ _ _

____“You know we’d be great together. And I know you’re in D.C., but… I’ll come to you.” She then heard a loud crash, Jeff groan, and the phone line cutting off._ _ _ _

____She sat staring at her phone for about ten minutes. After which, she said to herself, “What!?”_ _ _ _

____After she paced around her bedroom for close to an hour, trying to work out in her brain what to do next. She could pretend it never happened, but what if Jeff went through his recent outgoing calls list and saw her name? She could call him back tomorrow, but what if he doesn’t remember and he thinks she’s an idiot?_ _ _ _

____She didn’t know what to do._ _ _ _

____She settled on texting him. She decided to send him a vague text, just in case he didn’t remember, so she would cover all her bases._ _ _ _

_____Hey Jeff – Thanks for the call. I hope to see you guys soon.  
-Annie Edison__ _ _ _

____~~~~_ _ _ _

____The study group was settling into Annie’s townhouse, and Jeff decided to poke around a bit. He went into the kitchen to get some water, and is now looking through Annie’s pantry for a snack. Buttered noodles, corn flakes, Let’s Potato Chips. “Some things never change,” Jeff whispers to himself._ _ _ _

____“What was that, Jeff?” Pierce says, causing Jeff to jump._ _ _ _

____“Please don’t sneak up on me like that. I’m not used to you being alive yet,” Jeff says, grabbing the box of corn flakes and leaning against the counter._ _ _ _

____“Annie’s fallen off the rocker it seems,” Pierce says, then attempts to sit in a bar stool. It takes him far too long to get up there._ _ _ _

____“I don’t think you have the right to judge her, Pierce. I mean, look at you! Why did you do it?” Jeff asks, then promptly shoves a handful of corn flakes into his mouth._ _ _ _

____“First of all, I have the right to do anything I want. Free country. Second, screw you Winger. I look great,” Pierce turns his nose up, basically challenging Jeff to fight with him._ _ _ _

____“Seriously, Pierce. Why fake your death? And why give Troy your money?” Jeff asks, also wanting an answer on the sperm thing, but deciding not to push it._ _ _ _

____Pierce sighs. “Why did I fake my death? I got bored. I was afraid. I wanted out. Take your pick.” He motions for the corn flakes, and Jeff passes him the box._ _ _ _

____“What were you thinking? That we’d never find you?”_ _ _ _

____“I was hoping you wouldn’t.”_ _ _ _

____The words surprisingly sting Jeff. Even though he hates Pierce 95% of the time, he wouldn’t wish him dead. Even if he was previously thought to be dead._ _ _ _

____“Why?” Jeff asks._ _ _ _

____Pierce rolls his eyes. “I’m always your scapegoat. No one in the group likes me. None of you care about me.”_ _ _ _

____“One, yes you’re the scapegoat, but you’re our scapegoat. And two, of course we care about you! We all went to your cult funeral and accepted your sperm containers. If you thought that we didn’t like you, why would you give your savings to Troy?”_ _ _ _

____“Troy lived with me. He’s the only one just weird enough to understand me and just dumb enough not to notice I’m a big fraud.”_ _ _ _

____“To say Troy understands you may be a bit of an overstatement, but okay. I’ll bite. You think we don’t like you, but you included us in your will. You stand up for Britta when I make fun of her. You call Annie your favorite. You give Shirley money for her start up. You help Abed with his delusions. Hell, you gave Troy your life savings! Even though you’re old, and crazy, and racist almost all the time, you’re still part of our group and you know it. So really, why did you do it?”_ _ _ _

____Pierce squints his eyes and squeezes his hands together. “I needed to start over. I’m a 70-year-old man afraid of change. You guys are the only friends I made during my decade at Greendale, and you all were moving on.”_ _ _ _

____For once in all their time together, Jeff understands where Pierce is coming from. Everyone in the group deals with change differently; while Jeff may get wasted and drunk-dial the girl he likes; Pierce may fake his death. To each their own._ _ _ _

____“Pierce, even though you were the biggest tool in all of Greendale, we still missed you when we thought you were gone,” Jeff says. It’s the closest thing Pierce will ever get to affection from him._ _ _ _

____Pierce chuckles. “If you love me so much, why don’t you gay marry me?”_ _ _ _


	6. Being Sure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Jeff decides to rip the bandage off...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> Again, none of these characters are mine :)

After Annie left her house in chaos, she went to the park. It’s peaceful that time of day, and she needed some fresh air to clear her head. _Pierce is alive, Jeff is in my house, they’re all fighting…_

She shakes her head. She’s just overwhelmed. These nearly 100-hour work weeks are putting a strain on her mental sanity. It’s not that she wasn’t happy to see her friends, it’s just that she can’t handle all the usual foolishness that follows them at the moment. Although she does miss their past adventures…

She sighs deeply and sinks into the nearest bench. She wishes that everything can go back to the way it was when they were at Greendale. She could have her friends close and there would be no miscommunication, and she wouldn’t doubt her relationships with them. She would know that they were all close and that they weren’t going anywhere. Nothing would change.

Except, Annie knows that change is a good thing, especially this change. She loves her interning job, a lot more than she expected to. She’s sure now that this is what she wants to do with her life. She won’t allow herself to go back to Greendale.

She’s afraid that if she does, she’ll never leave. She’s afraid that in 40 years, she’ll regret everything. 

~~~~

It’s getting late, and Pierce and the Dean are already asleep on the couch. Troy and Abed are watching reruns of Inspector Spacetime on Troy’s laptop. Shirley has settled into Annie’s kitchen, and the house already smells like cinnamon. Chang hasn’t said anything and is just glaring at Jeff. Jeff, feeling very put off by this, moves upstairs to the guest bedroom. After about ten minutes of him lying on his back staring at the ceiling fan, Britta slowly opens the door.

“Hey, are you okay?” She asks.

“Okay is… an interesting word choice,” Jeff snickers. 

“Yeah, it’s been an exciting day,” She says, sitting on the end of the bed.

“Again, interesting word choice. Should we be worried that Annie isn’t back yet?” He asks, stretching his arms over his head.

“No, she texted me and said she’d be back later,” Britta says, studying Jeff’s face. “What’s been going on with you lately?”

He sighs. “Nothing. I’m fine.”

“I think you forget sometimes that I’ve known you for so long. And that we used to sleep together,” She says.

Jeff laughs. “It’s not like we ever did the whole ‘pillow talk’ thing, Britta.”

“Don’t change the subject. What happened with you and Annie?”

Jeff shrugs. “Nothing happened.” Britta raises her eyebrows. “Really! Nothing happened! I just… drunk-dialed her. About a week after she left. I said some pretty weird things, and we haven’t talked since. It’s just awkward and I don’t really want to deal with that.”

Britta smirks. “And what did you say?” 

“Something I will never repeat. Ever. So don’t even try,” Jeff rolls over on his side.

“Ugh, stop pouting! Just go talk to her! I’m sure you’ve made it more of a big deal than it actually is. Plus, it’s Annie. If all else fails, hug it out.” Britta taps his leg, then moves toward the door.

“Hey, Britta?” Jeff says, turning over to face her. “Thanks.”

Britta grins. “I told you I could shrink your brain.” She closes the door behind her, leaving Jeff alone with his thoughts. 

_I have to do something about this._

~~~~

It didn’t take him too long to find her; he knows her too well. She wouldn’t go somewhere too far because she would have a park that she regularly likes to visit. She would go somewhere pretty and well-lit. Luckily for Jeff, there was a park across from the end of her block that checked those boxes.

She’s sitting on a bench not too far from the entrance. He watches her brush her hair off her shoulder and twist her hands in her lap. He comes up next to her and sits down.

“Hey,” He says.

“How did you find me?” She asks.

“I didn’t have to look very far,” He says. They sit in silence, and it’s awkward. Jeff decides to just rip the bandage off. “So- “

“I-” She starts at the same time. They laugh uncomfortably and Annie fiddles with her hands. 

Jeff takes a leap of courage and clears his throat. ”So, I called you.”

Annie lets out a nervous giggle. “Yeah, you did.”

“I’m sorry I made everything awkward between us. Let’s just forget anything happened and go back to normal.” When she doesn’t say anything, Jeff assumes that they’ve made a silent deal. He starts to stand when Annie grabs his wrist. When he looks at her face, he can see that she’s furious. “What - "

“Do you know what your problem is, Jeff? You can never decide what you want. You like me? Then you call me up and ask me to marry you. You don’t? You bury me and pretend nothing ever happened. You’re always so extreme about everything! Didn’t you almost marry Britta three times?” Jeff shrugs and lowers his head. “Well, I’m not going to do it anymore. You can either ask me out, or we can just stay friends. Forever.”

Well, he definitely wasn’t expecting this. “But I thought… I mean, your text sent some pretty clear vibes that you weren’t interested.”

“You called me drunk! I was afraid that you wouldn’t remember and that I’d embarrass both of us if I said something. You’re the one who never texted me back!”

“I didn’t think your text warranted a response!” Jeff whisper-yells. Annie crosses her arms and rolls her eyes.

“Oh, and that’s my fault?”

“No!”

They both scoot away from each other until there is enough space for another person to sit between them. Jeff sighs and rubs his face in his hands. He tried to make things less awkward, but instead he just made it worse. He’s always assuming things about other people. He wants to stop that. 

“Annie, I’m sorry. For everything. I shouldn’t have assumed anything and I should have just texted you back. And I’m sorry that this visit sucks,” Jeff says.

He watches her face transform from fuming to smiling. “Thanks. And it doesn’t suck. This new internship is kicking my butt and I’m just super exhausted.”

“Do you like it?” Jeff asks.

Annie flips her hair over her shoulder. “I do. I really, really do. But I’m scared that somewhere along the line, I’m going to screw it all up. I feel like everything I want is right in front of me, but that I’m never going to be able to reach it.”

Jeff throws her an inquisitive glance. “Annie, the one person who I have complete faith in to succeed at anything is you. This is something you really love and something that you’re good at. You won’t fail, I’d bet my life on it.”

Annie is silent for a second, then she pulls him into a hug. “Thank you, Jeff,” She whispers into his shoulder as he hugs her back. They slowly pull apart, staring at each other. Annie flicks her hair again, but it ends up messier than it was in the first place. Jeff brushes it back with his index finger, and Annie’s cheeks turn bright red.

“If I had asked you out that night and not acted like a drunken ass,” Jeff starts. “what would you have said?”

Annie shudders. “How could we possibly make that work? We will be living 26 hours away from each other for the foreseeable future.”

“That’s debatable, but okay. Let’s say that was off the table. What would you have said?” Jeff asks.

“We’ll meet other people, Jeff,” Annie whispers.

Jeff shakes his head. “There’s no one else.”

Annie smirks slightly. “Is Jeff Winger proposing monogamy? No one will ever believe me if I tell.”

“Probably not, and I’ll never repeat it,” He says, making her laugh. “But seriously, what would you have said?”

At first, he can’t read her expression. Then, she’s leaning in and they’re kissing. Jeff mumbles in surprise, but once he processes what is happening, he pulls her closer and wraps his arms around her waist. Her hands move to his hair, and she combs her fingers through it gently. He doesn’t remember feeling like this with anyone, and he wants to hold on to this forever. The kiss was short, and slightly awkward, but it was exactly the answer that Jeff wanted.

They pull apart slowly, and Annie is smiling. Jeff just looks at her, taking her in, and then he stands up. 

“We should be getting back. They’re probably worried about us,” Jeff says, holding out his hand. “Milady.”

Annie grins then takes his hand. “Milord.”

~~~~

As it turns out, the study group wasn’t too overly concerned about Jeff and Annie. Pierce and the Dean are still asleep on the couch, but Chang and a pile of blankets have now joined them. Troy and Abed have fallen asleep on the floor, Inspector Space-time still playing on Troy’s laptop. Shirley and Britta are asleep in the guest room, leaving Jeff’s things outside the door. He rolls his eyes when he sees it.

Annie helps him set up to pull out couch. They don’t say a word, but they keep locking eyes. After it’s all done, Jeff kisses her good night. 

 

This is what he wants, now he’s sure of it.


	7. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the study group says goodbye...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine

The next few days were sort of a blur. 

Annie spent time with everyone when she was home from work, doing the things she missed most. Abed took her to a theater showing ‘A New Hope’, an homage to their paintball days. Troy took her to a football game, which he seemed to enjoy more than her, but the thought was still there. Britta brought her to a real protest, unlike their ‘Help the Gulf’ fundraiser. It wasn’t exactly the girl’s night out Annie had in mind, but it sure was eye-opening. Shirley brought her to a baking class, which went just as well as you would expect. Pierce and Annie went out to lunch and had a serious talk about his whole faking-his-death thing. 

Jeff went to a whole other level; he got the whole group a slot to go paintballing. 

It seemed like a good idea at the time. 

It’s Chang, Pierce, Troy, and Britta versus Jeff, Annie, Abed, and the Dean; Shirley decides she’d rather not get paint on her last pair of clothes before a three-day long van drive. She does make cookies for both teams and watches safely from the side lines.

The Dean is shot by Chang after celebrating finally being included in a paintball game using his usual Dean-related pun (“I’m DEAN-lighted to play paintball!) (It certainly wasn’t worth dying for) , and Chang is shot by Jeff after celebrating his shooting the Dean. After that, things got much more intense. 

Britta and Troy set up shop on the east side of the paintball arena, having Pierce guard it from the outside. Jeff, Annie, and Abed work out of a cave on the west side, occasionally sending one of them out to the front to see what their opponents are up to. No one attacks for a while, until Pierce charges the front lines, and in a surprising twist, shoots himself in the foot.

After that, all is quiet for almost an hour. 

Those who are already out begin complaining about how long it is taking, and eventually they ditch to go see a movie. 

Meanwhile, Abed’s team as it is now called, has started devising a plan…

“Annie, you’ll come along this side and Jeff will cover you. Then, I will swing over from a vine Tarzan-style and shoot Britta. That’ll just leave us with Troy,” Abed theorizes, pointing to the map he etched in the dirt.

Jeff and Annie look at each other. “Abed, where are you getting a vine?” Jeff asks. 

“Don’t worry about it. Just man your stations,” He says, sweeping the map away with his foot. “Let’s go.”

~~~~

Annie creeps along the gate at the edge of the arena, Jeff shortly behind her. They haven’t had a chance to talk much away from the others after what happened. Because she’s Annie, she can’t help worrying about the complicated things, like how this will work with the distance and if there even is a _this. He said he wanted this, right?_ She wonders to herself.

“Annie, stop thinking so loud,” Jeff whispers. “And stop worrying. We’ll figure it out as we go along.”

Annie grins. “Are you talking about us or paintball, Winger?”

Jeff smiles back, slowly lifting his gun and pointing toward where Troy and Britta should be. “Both.”

Then, all hell breaks loose. 

Shots rings out, leaving paint splatters just above Jeff’s head. Jeff and Annie look at each other, then Annie reaches for his hand and pulls him into safety. 

“It seems that Abed’s plan isn’t working,” Annie says, reloading her gun. 

“Looks like we’re going to have to do this on our own,” Jeff says, doing the same. 

They move like a cohesive unit, darting in and out of the shrubbery. They cover each other, scoping the area for any tiny motion. Both of them make it to the east side of the arena without seeing anything. 

“We’ve been bamboozled!” Annie exclaims. 

“Damn it!” Jeff curses, then kicks the ground. 

Then, Abed’s scream rips through the arena.

Jeff and Annie lock eyes and then take off running toward the west side with their paintball guns drawn.

~~~~

They make it all the way to the other side without being shot, but Abed, Troy and Britta are nowhere to be seen. Jeff and Annie stand back to back, holding their guns out in front of them. 

“This has to be a trap, right?” Jeff whispers.

“But where is Abed?” Annie says back.

“I’ll tell you where Abed is!” Britta’s voice echoes from behind them. They whip around and point their guns at her. “He’s dead!’

“And so are you,” Annie smirks, then shoots. A pink paintball splatters on Britta’s right arm. 

Britta drops her weapon and throws her hands in the air. “You got me.” She then walks off, trying to get the paint off of her shirt. 

“That was weird and oddly easy. Don’t you think?” Annie asks, both of them watching Britta vanish from view. 

Suddenly, a battle call booms through the arena. 

“That sounds like…” Annie starts, looking around frantically for the source.

“Tarzan,” Jeff growls. 

It all happens so fast; one second, Jeff and Annie are armed and ready, and the next they are being shot in the back by Troy and Abed.

“Troy and Abed winning paintball!” Troy and Abed shout, holstering their guns.

“Hey! What the hell?” Jeff yells, dropping his gun.

“Abed, we’re on the same team! You aren’t supposed to shoot _us_!” Annie cries.

“Maybe you should have thought of that before putting us on different teams,” Troy points out, then they do their handshake.

~~~~

After they get back to Annie’s townhouse and get themselves cleaned up, the group stands in the living room with all of their stuff, not knowing how to say goodbye. While visiting Annie was a good idea, they didn’t put much thought into what they would have to do when they leave. 

Chang and the Dean don’t have too much to say to Annie except for “Good luck”, so they bring the bags out to the van. Pierce apologizes as sincerely as he is physically able to. Shirley gives her a hug and tells her that she made a goodbye pie that’s in her fridge. Britta also hugs her and promises to come visit soon. Troy and Abed nearly tackle her to the ground as they squeeze her tight. They then ask permission to call her whenever they need help doing laundry or using the stove. 

And then there was Jeff. 

Jeff is the last one to say goodbye. He doesn’t really know where to go from here. The atmosphere is bittersweet, happy for their friend but sad to let her go. Shirley is tearing up and Troy is already crying. Annie is threatening to break down as well.

“Hey, hey! Everyone, let’s take a step back for a minute. We are happy for Annie, let’s remember that,” Jeff says.

“It’s not that we aren’t happy for her Jeffery, we’re just sad to leave her behind,” Britta says, smiling lightly toward Annie.

Jeff smiles. He feels a ‘wingerism’ coming on. 

“We aren’t leaving Annie behind, because she is always going to be a part of this story. She will always be in the halls of Greendale, running the debate team. She will always be in Troy’s apartment. She will always be a part of our paintball games. Just because we aren’t together all the time, doesn’t mean that our story is over,” Jeff says.

“Technically, we already had our series finale, but the reboot is looking promising,” Abed says.

“Abed is right, our reboot does look promising. So let’s say good luck instead of goodbye,” Jeff gestures to the group, orchestrating them to all say “good luck” to their friend. “Okay, good. Now let’s get on the road.”

~~~~

Britta is one of the last members of the study group to leave Annie’s house. The only one left inside is Jeff. She watches him wrap Annie in his arms and kiss the top of her head. Britta smiles to herself and shuts the door behind her, giving them the privacy they need.

~~~~

An hour later, the group is sitting rather quietly in the van. It has been a tiring week for them all. Jeff is driving, Britta is in the passenger seat, Shirley is tucked in between Troy and Abed, and Chang is sitting in the way back between Pierce and the Dean. 

“So,” Britta says. “How did things go with Annie?”

“Still not talking about it,” Jeff says, keeping his eyes on the road.

“Will you at least admit that my psychology skills helped you confront your feelings?” She tries.

“Never,” Jeff says firmly, but smiles.

After a few more minutes of comfortable silence, Abed clears his throat in the back seat. “It seems that the reboot is happening. The plot points in the premiere intrigue me, especially the Jeff and Annie development,” He says, not noticing Jeff’s rolling eyes. “I think this is going to be a great season.”

“Well Abed,” Jeff says, “I think for once, I’m inclined to agree with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for making it to the end! This is my first fan fiction and my first experience writing the characters of Community. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think!


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